DOC planning new victim notification system

Crime victims will soon have a new tool to help them track their attacker in the legal system.

Corrections Secretary Rick Raemisch says a $1.2 million grant from the US Department of Justice will help launch a new statewide victim notification system. He says the project is intended to make sure all victims have easy access to the status of an offender or defendant as they move through the criminal justice system.

Raemisch says the automated system will provide victims with information they need to stay safe, such as an offender's current custody status or if they make bail.

The state does already have a system in place that notifies victims about the status of an offender. However, Raemisch says it can be complicated and stressful for victims to use. The new system being developed would allow them to use register with just one source for information on an offender.

The Secretary says the system will also enhance the current network that helps crime victims.